Rishabh Pant – The 23-year old who conquered the Gabba in Style

Rishabh Pant toured Australia only as a Test wicketkeeper. Despite a quick-fire hundred in the warm-up, he was left out for the opening Test at the Adelaide Oval. Pant’s case was an interesting one as the left-hander had a hundred in the previous Test innings on Australian soil. The 23-year-old has always been under criticism for his wicket-keeping despite being a key contributor to the Indian batting overseas.

The Adelaide debacle saw Pant coming into the line-up and contributing with the bat. He scored 29 from 40 balls and was involved in a 50+ stand with skipper Ajinkya Rahane. At Sydney as well, he made 36 runs in the first innings before an aggressive 118-ball 97 which put India in a position of aiming for a win after starting the final session with minimal hopes of escaping a defeat. In the first innings at Gabba, Pant scored a quick 23 but eventually got out and recorded his lowest Test score in Australia.

The chance Rishabh missed at Sydney was up for grabs in Brisbane as he walked to bat at No.5 with 161 runs needed in 43.1 overs. Pant did take his time before going for the big hits and cleverly played Nathan Lyon who had the advantage of spinning away from him on a rough outside off stump. By the time Australia took the new ball, India still needed 100 runs from 20 overs. However, Pant was only 34 off 84 balls at that time giving doubts if India were aiming for a win.

Just Rishabh Pant doing Rishabh Pant things ?#AUSvIND pic.twitter.com/j4jBpVwIjL

— ICC (@ICC) January 19, 2021

He decided to take on the hard new ball and did not let the required run-rate climb high. Pant decided to kill the game after Washington Sundar got a couple of boundaries off Pat Cummins. The Southpaw smashed back to back boundaries off Lyon despite the field beginning to spread. This brought down India’s equation to 25 from 36 balls. It was the signs of Pant trusting Sundar and Shardul Thakur after the first innings exploits.

Rishabh took his risks and tried to hit every ball and eventually brought down the equation to 3 runs from 2.3 overs when India lost their 7th wicket. With a drive down the ground on the 2nd last over of the match, Rishabh Pant helped India to conquer the Gabba for the first time ever in Test cricket. This win also helped India to break the 31-year long unbeaten streak of the Aussies in Brisbane in this format. Pant scored 55 of his 89* in only 54 balls he faced since Australia took the 2nd new ball.

A moment this young, brave, team will never EVER forget ?

They take a lap of honour around their conquered fortress…

Rishabh Pant in tears as he proudly carries the Indian flag ?? pic.twitter.com/jZYYNNeuJ4

— Cricket on BT Sport (@btsportcricket) January 19, 2021

The unbeaten 89 by Pant is now only the 2nd highest individual score in a Test run-chase by a keeper behind Adam Gilchrist’s 149* in the 1999 Hobart Test against Pakistan. The knock also helped Pant to finish the series as India’s leading run-getter with 274 runs; three more than Cheteshwar Pujara’s tally. Interestingly, it was Pujara who was the top run-getter for India in the 2018-19 tour and Pant finished at second place.